Light, Dark, and Earth
by mysticdragon01
Summary: Spyro and Cynder were captured by a group of apes, and in order to escape, Spyro sent them through time, to a place were Sworgon still rules. The duo aren't strong enough to defeat him, and the only ally available is Malefor. But can they trust him?
1. The Journey Ahead

It's about time I published something. This takes place a month after A New Beginning. The storyline, however, is altered. **I do not own Spyro, Sparx, Cynder, or the guardians. I own Sworgon.**

If you read then please review. I don't really like criticism, so no flaming please. Constructive criticism never hurts.

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"Can't catch me, purple boy!" Sparx teased as he buzzed through the air, running away from Spyro, who was fruitlessly running after him; trying to catch him.

"You just wait! I'll get you!" Spyro panted, still running. Sparx decided not to speak, but rather mock Spyro by laughing uncontrollably. Cynder and Ignitus were sitting close by, watching the daily game of tag. As usual, Spyro soon gave up the chase, and he was quickly assaulted by a barrage of insults and jokes from Sparx, who now assumed his position on Spyro's head.

"This is actually a great running exercise," Ignitus stated. Spyro groaned, not much at Ignitus' comment but rather at the still-flowing torrent of mockery from Sparx.

"Shut up," Spyro mumbled to Sparx. When Sparx persisted, Spyro shook his head abruptly, and Sparx fell off, and before he had a chance to react, he was trapped between Spyro's paws in a rather firm grip.

"You cheater! Let me go you smelly, wanna-be dragon!" Sparx bellowed. Spyro laughed, and it was abnormally devilish. Ignitus smiled at their happy-go-luckiness, but it was probably not to last.

-----

The Dragon Realms were under the rule of Sworgon, a mighty and colossal dragon, much like Cynder used to be. He has taken Terrador, Cyril, and Volteer captive, and once again Ignitus managed to escape and protect Spyro and Cynder.

Sworgon's lair was far away, on top of Mount Iniquity. It was a very desolate place, and was surrounded by evil, mysterious dragons as wild saber-toothed animals, as well as a number of leg-less evil birds the size of… well, a very big size.

The one thing that remained from previous times was the Dark Master, aka Malefor, who was supposedly recovering far away. He and Spyro had met once and the outcome had been unpleasant.

It had been only a month since Cynder was freed from her evil self, so she was still working out the kinks of her daily life. For instance, she still possessed a small bloodlust and had a hint o a sadistic attitude. She didn't hang around Spyro too much because she was still learning how not to use her claws.

Cynder despised the Dark Master greatly, for he had left an inedible stain on her - whenever she felt Spyro's presence, whatever darkness she had left seemed to erupt and gnaw at her mind, forcing her to try and attack him.

"It will go away," Ignitus had once said, and Cynder had smiled, of course. She'd give anything to believe it.

-----

Night was closing in, and soon everyone walked to the temple and went to their beds. Cynder had requested that she have her own room, for the fear of attacking Spyro. Every night, she felt an awkward and unlikely mix of emotions; she wanted to be with Spyro, and yet she didn't.

Spyro, on the other hand, said he understood her. But deep inside, he felt lonely. He really had no one to talk to. Sure, Ignitus was like a father to him, but in terms of 'friends', he felt alone. Yes, Sparx was always willing to talk, but sometimes he talked too much and got annoying.

Spyro curled up on his grass bed. There was a window to his left, and he felt the winter chill coming in. It was autumn now; not that it really mattered. Every day was basically the same. But Spyro knew that it would soon change, because tomorrow he would have training, and after that he would be sent to try and free Volteer.

He closed his eyes and soon fell asleep. Everyone else in the temple did the same.

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Spyro woke up as the first rays of sunlight beamed onto him. He slowly stood up and quietly snuck out of the temple, and walked to the close-by river. Then Spyro bathed in the river for a while, and soon got out and slowly dried in the morning sun. He did that every morning. It refreshed him.

After he was dry he walked back to the temple. After 27 days of the same thing, Spyro found himself walking to the river without so much as thinking about it. On the way back to the temple, he spotted a stray sheep, decided he was hungry, and chased it down and ate it.

By the time Spyro got back, Ignitus was waiting for him. "Good morning, little one," he said. Spyro gave him a small smile and replied, "Good morning."

After Ignitus and Cynder had their own breakfast and possible morning rituals, they all went to the training room. As usual, Cynder kept her distance, and Spyro sighed. He knew she was doing that for his own good but he wanted her to stop. It was like being a repelling magnet. They were both the same pole, so they were repelling each other…

Sparx followed Spyro and started complaining, "Not this madness again!" No one replied to that, except Spyro, who just grunted. Sparx flew up to the head of a statue, watched the dragons for a few seconds and then fell asleep.

"Today, you will practice all you know," Ignitus told Spyro, and then added rather glumly, "So that tomorrow you are ready. Spyro nodded, and soon several dummies appeared from thin air.

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Spyro whipped a dummy away with his tail and bashed another one with his horns. One of them was smart enough to sneak up from behind, and Spyro had barely enough time to hill it with his claws. New dummies surrounded him, and Spyro killed them all with a full tail swipe. The rest of physical training continued much like this, until Spyro was tired and got hit, and at that point Ignitus the training.

"Are you alright?" Ignitus asked him. Spyro nodded in reply. Then, Ignitus continued: "Now, Spyro, you will hit all the dummies with your fire element." At the end of his sentence, a few dummies sprouted all the way at the other side of the room.

Spyro hit the first one successfully, and within the second it turned to ashes. The second one followed suit, but on the third dummy Spyro missed the target by a bit and only scorched the dummy's arm. He was slightly mad with himself, and on the second try he burned the dummy.

Without a word, the training continued, but this time the dummies were closer, but they were moving in disorderly path. Spyro belched a large fireball and knocked down the first one, missed the second one altogether, and then finally eliminated it. After a few more minutes of this, Spyro's throat began to sting and his fireballs were smaller, and there Ignitus stopped the training.

"Now it is time to practice your Fire Fury," Ignitus declared. Immobile dummies materialized around Spyro. He welled up the fire inside of him, and soon he was engulfed in flames. Then the problem revealed itself - Spyro wasn't sure how to release all the energy. It was like trying to control a part of your body you have never been able to control. Finally the energy dissipated and Spyro tried again.

This time he thought about the enemies, how he despised them. Soon he was once again surrounded in a sphere of fire, and a few flames leapt at the dummies, like solar flares on a sun. Then, the whole sphere exploded in a flash of light and searing flames vaporized every living thing in range. When it was over, Spyro stood there panting and very tired, while Ignitus congratulated him and announced the end of training.

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Cynder watched Spyro from a side of the room while he slowly walked near her and lied down. Immediately a surge of anger and darkness churned through her, and she hid it, along with a few tears. She wanted to be with Spyro, but she couldn't. Why was this happening to her?

Spyro yawned and found that his eyes were closing. But he didn't want to sleep now. He wanted to watch Cynder, who was now training as well. She was agile, and her blows were solid, and she seemed fiery with determination to kill the dummies. 'It must be her habits she got when she was evil,' Spyro thought.

When it came to elemental training, Cynder fired globs of poison, and when it touched a dummy, it started to burn away from the acid, like flames spreading across paper. Spyro couldn't help but watch her every move, and soon he was snapped back to reality from day-dreaming by his own thought: 'Spyro, stop this.'

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By the time Cynder finished, Spyro was sleeping, and it was early afternoon. Sparx woke him up by buzzing in front of his face, and Spyro almost swatted him. He yawned and stretched, and then finally got up and went for lunch. He ran out of the temple and charged at the nearest sheep, and then gladly ate the unfortunate thing.

He relaxed in the river for a moment, dried in the sun, and then let the usual boredom submerge him. The rest of the day was completely free. Spyro decided to go look for Cynder. He didn't know why, he just walked back to the temple and searched for her. But she was either not there or Spyro missed her.

Finally he gave up and went to Ignitus instead. The orange dragon was like a father to him, and he always seemed to have advice. Well, isn't that was a father does? Ignitus was now gazing into the Pool of Visions, but Spyro thought there wasn't much to see right now.

"Ignitus, do you know where Cynder is? I can't find her anywhere," Spyro asked him. Ignitus looked up from the pool and replied, "I have not seen her, Spyro. Is something troubling you?" Spyro shook his head and walked closer to him. Then he confessed, "I'm sort of worried about her. She acts weird whenever she sees me. Did I do something wrong to her?"

"No, Spyro, you are not to blame. It is still the Dark Master's influence," Ignitus answered, and Spyro sighed a little with relief. Ignitus, for whatever reason, put his wing around Spyro. Then he asked, "Is there anything else troubling you? Like tomorrow?"

Spyro hadn't really thought about it - and it was because he didn't want to think about it. Spyro sighed and looked at the floor. Truth to be told, he didn't want to go. Alone, at least. Sparx satisfied the desire for company, but he wasn't really help if Spyro got in trouble. He unconsciously wanted Cynder to come with him, but whenever the idea surfaced, Spyro deleted it, because he knew that Cynder doesn't like to be around him much.

'Ignitus, do you think I'm ready for it?" Spyro asked. Ignitus looked up at the ceiling and replied, "I believe you can rescue the guardians, like you did during Cynder's reign." The room was quiet for several long minutes. Then Spyro said, "I never thought I'd have to head out alone again…"

Ignitus didn't have much to say to that, but he understood Spyro. It wasn't very fun saving the world alone knowing that someone could have helped you. Finally, he replied, trying to comfort Spyro, "I trust that after this is over, we will have peace."

And then, Ignitus said something that was the strangest and most unlikely thing to be said at that moment: "Why don't you ask Cynder to go with you?"

At any other time, Spyro would have welcomed the idea. But he felt that he already knew the answer if he actually asked the question. Spyro thought about it for an eternal minute, until he replied, "Okay, I'll ask."

'Though I doubt she'll answer,' Spyro though as he trudged out of the room.

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After a quick, sheepish lunch, Ignitus decided that Spyro should practice flying. Spyro conceded and soon he was circling the temple high in the sky. Flying seemed to be entertaining, and it gave Spyro a feeling of freedom. Flying created an unforgettable rush of air that seemed to gather at his wings… The problem, being new to flying, was that it tired his wings pretty quickly.

Spyro circled the temple and wheeled through the sky, until the biggest problem approached - landing. He had never landed as smoothly as Cynder; he always stumbled a bit, sometimes even fell flat.

So, Spyro circled lower, and prepared to land, bracing himself, though normally it would be unnecessary. He glided down, until he felt his claws touch the ground, and he forgot about his wings, he just landed, running. He slowed, stumbling a bit on his own foot. Again.

Sparx was first to comment, obviously: "Finally you learned how to fly! Now you're a bit closer to being as fast as I am!" Spyro snorted, and opened his mouth to reply, but a comeback did not come. Spyro wasn't the type to make snide replies… Sometimes, that is.

Ignitus was next, and he applauded, "That was great! Except for the last part, where you stumbled a bit, you are making excellent progress." Spyro thanked him, and then he ran to the river, hoping it would drown the anxiousness he possessed. And he hoped it would consume time.

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As it happened, the day sped by faster than Spyro had thought, and he soon found himself sitting by an evening fire Ignitus had made eating a sheep. It was getting cold as winter drew nearer, and Spyro didn't want to leave the fire's warmth. Ignitus told him he could sleep here, and Spyro happily obliged. The fire comforted him… Even though the actions of tomorrow chilled his spine…

He was getting drowsy, when he realized he forgot to ask Cynder the unlikely question. However, Cynder chose to sleep in her usual chamber, so when Spyro got up and left the fire, cold seeped through his scales and chilled him to the bone, and he shivered. He ran to keep himself warm and soon approached the entrance to Cynder's room.

All previous worries, as well as the cold feeling, completely evaporated, and were replaced by hesitation and uncertainty. How would Cynder answer the question? And how Spyro even ask if Cynder avoided him all the time?

His curious and adventurous nature ignored his thoughts completely, and suddenly his mouth was talking all by itself. "Cynder, I was wondering..," he started, walking into the room, "about tomorrow… I was wondering if… you could, uh… come with me…?"

For Cynder, this was the worst, most feared, most unanswerable question Spyro could have asked. It was so surprising and unlikely that her eyes went wide and her mouth hung open. What could she possible say? How could she say no?... How could she say yes?

It was the hardest decision in her life, yet there were more to come. She heard herself say something, but she didn't know what. Her mind was racing, calculating the options:

If she said yes, of course Spyro would be happy. And Cynder wanted just that. But, the darkness left in her, which was now already erupting inside her, would eventually gain control of her and Cynder feared that she would harm Spyro or be a liability.

On the other hand, if she said no… Cynder was sure Spyro would be devastated and miserable, and she couldn't bear to see that. She would feel guilty, not only for not helping out, but also because she would know that Spyro was alone and in danger…

There was only one thing that could be done, and it would probably be done soon, even without Cynder's thoughts, though the thing was as cruel and unkind as the other options. But, in order to avoid a direct answer, Cynder decided to say it…

"Go away!" Cynder growled, gnawing her teeth. Spyro was speechless, and was being torn apart from inside out. He was completely taken aback by Cynder's reaction. Normally Spyro would have persisted until he received a yes or no answer. His body was too stunned to move, so Cynder repeated, growling louder, almost scaring Spyro: "GO!"

Now he slowly regained control of his trembling body and ran out of the room. He did not return to the fire. He ran to his own room, and cried it out.

If he had stayed a while longer at Cynder's room, he would have seen her burst into tears.

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Minutes lie. Especially at times like these. Therefore it is impossible to tell the time that elapsed since Spyro retreated from Cynder's room. But approximately ten minutes later, Ignitus came wandering around, and he saw that Spyro was sobbing quietly. Spyro's head rose when he heard Ignitus' claws clink against the floor.

"What is troubling you?" Ignitus asked. Spyro calmed himself and then answered, "It's just… I asked Cynder... and she…" There was really no need to finish, and Spyro had no intention in hiding this from Ignitus. Ignitus sighed and stretched his wing around Spyro. Words for comfort had dried up. There was nothing much to say.

After some more sobbing, Spyro suddenly stopped and looked up at Ignitus with teary eyes. He said, "Thanks, Ignitus. I guess I'll go alone then. Good night." Ignitus looked at Spyro suspiciously, then finally he left while saying, "Good night, young one…"

Ignitus strode to the pool of visions. He had an awkward feeling something would show up. And he was right. The pool created shapes and took an appropriate hue, and soon the image of the Dark Master flying through the air materialized. Malefor was flying to Mount Iniquity. 'What is he up to, and is it important?' Ignitus asked himself.

The answer to those questions would ultimately change their lives.


	2. Trapped

Once again, I don't own the character s of this story except for Sworgon. As I aforementioned, no flaming.

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Noticing the lack of Spyro snoring beside him - or rather, under him - Sparx flew to Spyro's room. He found Spyro asleep, snoring quietly. Sparx thought of making a snide comment, but he decided against it - he could easily see from Spyro's face that he had been crying.

Sparx already knew who had caused this. "The evil-she-dragon has done it again," Sparx mumbled to himself, and fell asleep on Spyro's horn.

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Spyro woke up with a yawn. Yesterday's events were, luckily, forgotten. Spyro smiled as he felt Sparx on his horn. He gently put him on his bed and strode of to his every-day stroll to the river.

After washing in the river for a couple of minutes, the importance of today hit him like a large ocean wave. Anxiety submerged him, and he couldn't help but want to protest against himself leaving the temple. Spyro sighed and got out of the water.

Spyro lumbered to the temple as slowly as possible. Finally he reached the entrance, and Ignitus was there. He saw Spyro's miserable expression and sighed, and then comforted, "You're going to be alright, Spyro." Spyro hoped Ignitus was right but he doubted it.

For some reason Spyro wanted to get it over with; leave as soon as possible. Ignitus actually hugged him and said, "I believe in you, young dragon." Spyro smiled at him and answered, "Thanks, Ignitus…" Spyro was about to turn around and leave, but Cynder stopped him. She apologized, "Spyro, I'm really sorry about what I said yesterday…"

Spyro looked her in the eyes and saw the truth of it. It was dishonest to say that he fully forgave her, but nevertheless, he replied, "I forgive you, Cynder…at least, for now…" Cynder attempted a smile, but her true emotions immediately dispelled the action. She sighed and explained, "And that's why I can't go with you, Spyro… I would just do things like that, maybe even worse…"

Spyro sighed silently to himself. Finally he said, "It's okay Cynder… I understand…" Without another word, he turned around, and took the first steps to the wilderness. And with that, the adventure finally began…

Spyro noticed that Sparx was buzzing next to him. Then he remembered. "Sparx, you have to stay here. It's too dangerous."

"Now way, dude. Without me you would be dead right now," Sparx replied crossly.

"Sparx, please. Do me a favor, for once."

"For once?" Sparx retorted, "You ungrateful, smelly…"

"Just stay here. Ignitus, make sure he does."

Before Sparx could react, Ignitus snatched him and held. "Let me go, old man!" Sparx yelled, punching Ignitus' paws. Not that he felt anything.

Finally, Spyro left. Without a word.

-----

Spyro flew above the river, enjoying the feeling of fresh air against his wings. Although Spyro felt reluctant and tense, being out in the open seemed familiar and in-place to him. He looked back at the temple, which was fairly far away now… Spyro shook the thoughts away and concentrated on the path ahead.

Mt. Iniquity loomed far ahead. Spyro didn't want to encounter Sworgon, so he made a big circle. By the time he was made a quarter-circle around the colossal mountain, his wings felt a bit sore so Spyro landed - a bit roughly - and walked since then.

A twig snapped behind Spyro, and he looked around just in time to see an ape jump out at him. Spyro instinctively kicked it in the stomach and the ape collapsed to the ground. Spyro sighed in relief and headed forward. Were there more apes ahead? The answer would be pretty obvious.

A few minutes later, three apes ambushed Spyro and jumped out at him from a bush. Spyro tail swiped two of them side, but one ape was a bit smarter to dodge, and he kicked Spyro's side, which sent him skidding to a tree, wincing in pain.

The single ape went up to Spyro, but he roasted it with a fireball. Spyro got up and brushed himself off, and then continued onward. A few times apes jumped out like that, and Spyro was beginning to wonder if they were expecting him. Surely the apes didn't have enough brains to conjure up a plan, did they?

The next hour passed without an interruption. Spyro's goal, the Harrowing Plains, was far ahead. That was, or so Ignitus thought, Volteer was. This rescue mission reminded Spyro of the time he had in Dante's Freezer… Suddenly Spyro was literally thrown of the ground by an unknown force. It stung his underbelly and flung him not a tree branch. Spyro cried out in agony and looked down at his attacker and saw that it was one of those ugly apes that threw bombs.

Spyro narrowed his eyes and spit a fireball at it, but the ape cowered behind its shield. When the ape's tiny brain confirmed that he wasn't in danger, he threw another bomb straight at the branch Spyro was lying on. Spyro didn't have enough time to get out of the way, and he got slightly hit by the explosion and fell on the ground. He grunted in anguish and stood up quickly, dodging another bomb.

Then suddenly another ape distracted Spyro by jumping at him from behind. Spyro barbequed it without much thought, but when he turned around, the bomb-dropping ape swung his mace and it punctured his shoulder. Spyro roared in pain, and before he could react, the ape was on him, pinning him down, and holding the mace above him. Spyro braced himself; not that it would prevent him from dying. He couldn't believe he was about to die by an ape's blow. It was embarrassing. Not that it would matter.

The blow never came. Spyro felt the ape slide off his stomach and slowly opened his eyes. At first he thought he was hallucinating, because he saw a black dragon. He shook his head and he then knew it was Cynder.

"C-Cynder?' What are you doing here?" Spyro asked.

"So much or gratitude," she said.

"Oh. Sorry. Thanks for saving me," Spyro thanked, and then he asked again, "But what are you doing here? I thought you said you hate me… or something like that."

Cynder sighed, and then recited, as if for the millionth time, "I TOLD you, I don't hate you. It's just that I feel like I wanna … kill you when I'm around you."

"It's called hatred," Spyro pointed out dryly.

Cynder growled a bit. Then she snapped, quite annoyed, "Let's just go."

They continued in silence, and they were a churn of distant emotions. However, Spyro was pleased that Cynder came to help him. In fact, obviously, she had saved his life.

Soon, an ape jumped out of the bushes… again. Cynder quickly screamed, "Spyro, don't touch it. I wanna kill it!" Spyro stood still and watched Cynder literally rip the ape to pieces.

"Ha, that's what you get when you mess with--" Cynder started, but suddenly a deafening thunderclap interrupted her. All out of nowhere a fierce storm whipped up and soon they were all drenched from rain. The lightning was bright and illuminated the horizon. The thunder rumbled with abnormal noise and the wind felt like a hurricane.

"Cynder, we need to find a place to get out of this storm!" Spyro yelled over the wind.

Cynder just nodded. They looked around for shelter but saw nothing but trees. Trees. High trees… "Spyro, we need to get out of here!" Spyro seemed to just notice the high trees as well.

Now, if you didn't figure out the threat of high trees, I will teach you something about lightning: It tends to strike the highest object in an area; and in this case, the highest points are the trees, which, of course, can catch fire when stricken by lightning.

But something different happened. A bolt of lightning ripped the sky and slammed against a tree. The tree immediately caught fire, and it collapsed to the forest floor, a few meters away from where Spyro and Cynder were standing. The fire spread quickly, blocking away the path ahead.

"Cynder, we need to do something! We can't just let this fire burn on!" Spyro yelled.

"Spyro, we can't do anything about it! Just run!" Cynder ordered. A tree snapped to two and one piece fell dangerously close to Cynder's paw. The fire from the tree singed it, and Cynder winced. She immediately started running, and Spyro followed her.

The fire spread faster than the speed of Spyro and Cynder's legs. Before they knew it, the fire trapped them in a big red U, and the only way out was Mount Iniquity… "The mountain is our only path!" Spyro yelled, as if Cynder hasn't known that. She nodded, and they ran up the dark, stone mountain…

Soon they found a cave. It looked rather peculiar, because the entrance was almost a perfect circle and therefore looked unnatural. Spyro and Cynder cautiously entered the cave, shaking the raindrops off them, and listening for any signs of life.

They came to a large, circular room. There was a tunnel in the ceiling where fresh air came in and smoke came out, but rain would not enter the cave. There was a fair supply of old branches and Spyro immediately gathered them in the middle of the room and started a fire.

The storm roared by, and seconds ticked. The cave seemed to a timeless cage; Spyro wasn't sure how long they have been there. He wondered why the wood was here. It certainly couldn't have just fallen from the ceiling… In fact, something even worse was lurking at the ceiling…

Cynder broke his thoughts by shifting closer to him. Her wings touched his, and Cynder smiled. Spyro tried his best to return it.

All of a sudden, a large ape jumped out of the tunnel in the ceiling. Spyro realized that they had been set up. The ape was abnormally bulky and hat steel armor all over its body. It had a long, grey sword and a Spyro shield. At first the ape laughed, but it stopped when Spyro hit its shield with a fireball.

"Pathetic! It will be simple capturing you!" the ape growled. Amazing. The ape learned how to talk. Next thing you know they're gonna learn 1 + 1.

Spyro growled, and Cynder did as well. They charged at the ape together; Spyro bashed it with his head and Cynder ripped at it with her claws. But the ape was tough and barely seemed to care about his wounds; he swung his arm and sent Spyro and Cynder back, wincing.

At the big ape's signal, more apes poured out of the hole in the ceiling. 'How could all of them be there unnoticed?' Spyro asked himself. But that was irrelevant now, because it was clear that Spyro and Cynder were outnumbered and would probably be defeated. Spyro tried to deal with one ape, but another hit him in the head and kicked him back. Spyro moaned in agony, slowly getting up from the ground.

Spyro glanced around for an opening. The apes blocked the entrance from which Spyro and Cynder came from. Behind them, there was a faint light. Spyro motioned to Cynder and they ran toward it.

It turned out to be an exit, but the area was covered. However, it was defended by only six apes. Spyro fried one, and clung onto it, biting its head. The other ape tried to punch Spyro's back but he hit the ape with his tail. The ape, however, got up and managed to elbow Spyro's ribs. He winced and roasted the ape alive.

Meanwhile, Cynder was clawing an ape and punching another one at the same time. She poisoned one with her element and was about to pounce on the remaining ape, but it was quicker, and it punched her straight between her horns. Cynder felt a bit fuzzy, and the ape hit her again. She was now pinned to the ground.

Suddenly fire hit the ape. "Cynder, are you alright?" Spyro asked. Cynder moaned as a reply. But Spyro looked anxious. "Cynder, can you get up? All the other apes inside are coming…" Cynder's eyes widened. She scrambled to her feet.

Finally they got a look around the mountain's opposite side. There was a stream running down the slope, and it completely blocked their path. Stream… Water…

Let me teach you something about lightning once again. I know I should be a teacher. Anyway, there are several objects that conduct electrical charges. This means that they channel the energy throughout the whole substance. The best conductors include metal and water…

Spyro looked at the sky in dismay. The storm was still raging. They were trapped. Nature was against them. Maybe if they could fly… just for a while… Over the river…

Cynder sensed Spyro's thinking and volunteered, "I'll fly first." Spyro was about to protest, but Cynder already flew off, keeping as low to the ground as possible.

What's a story without suspense and dramatic events? Of course Cynder got hit by lightning. The bolt ripped the sky and struck her when she was half-way across the river. Spyro's heart sank and he yelled into the night, "Cynder!" Cynder had roared out it pain as more than a thousand volts surged through her system. She fell limply into the cold water.

His first reaction was to swim for her. But the last thing they needed was for both of them to be electrified. Spyro thought rapidly. If only he had all his powers back… It was worth trying… Spyro tried breathing ice. A thin, blue ray came from his mouth, freezing some water into a chunk of ice the size an A2 notebook. However, at that point the ice stopped, probably because Spyro was exhausted. The apes were advancing. They reached the exit…

Spyro broke the ice chunk from solid ground, using it as a small, crude raft. Only a few inches separated him and the apes, which were growling and snarling. Spyro expected the apes to be as dumb as to go in the water, but surprisingly, they stood there. It was as if they grew smarter…

Spyro paddled to the spot where Cynder hit the water with his paws, avoiding the water when thunder rumbled. At last he saw Cynder under the water. What now? Was he going to risk getting electrified? …

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Just so you know for the future, I like cliffhangers.


	3. Two Purple Dragons

PART 3

The blood starts here… That's really all I can say. And I'm noticing that the chapters are getting shorter. Oh well.

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Spyro made a split-second decision. After a bolt of lightning, he dove into the water, grabbing Cynder's tail, and pulled her up as fast as he could. The water was cold and was not improving his mood. The current was present and Spyro could feel himself moving downriver a bit. He lunged for air and climbed up the ice. He pulled Cynder up onto it. Spyro removed his tail from the water just as a slightly pink ray of lightning struck the water.

Cynder barely fit on the tiny raft. She was unconscious, and Spyro had to hold her so that she would not slip off. However, something else frightened Spyro. Their combined weight was affecting the chunk of ice. Spyro looked at the other side of the river, and instantly his heart skipped a few beats. There were at least ten apes waiting there. There was no way he could fight all of them by himself; not with Cynder being unconscious.

There was no way out of this unfortunate situation. Hesitantly, and after a piece of ice crumbled beneath their feet, he paddled toward the shore. Spyro fired a few fireballs at the apes, but they hid behind their shields. It was no use. Spyro closed his eyes as the ice raft hit the shore. An ape grabbed him by the neck while another one elbowed his side. Spyro instinctively kicked an ape's chest, but he was punched in the stomach because of it. He began to roar out n pain as the apes toyed with him. But soon he was hit in the head with a club, and the world blacked out and he felt nothing.

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"Spyro... Wake up…" It was a faint voice in Spyro's head. The events that occurred an hour ago flowed into his mind. His eyes slowly flickered open and he sat up - or at least tried to. His forelegs were chained together. He lost balance and fell to his side. And, he felt a strong throb in his head. "What happened? Where are we?" Spyro asked Cynder, who's forelegs weren't chained for some reason.

"We're locked up in a cage. The apes took us here. Otherwise, I don't know. I woke up a few minutes ago," Cynder answered. Spyro found it hard to listen to her; his pounding head was disrupting his senses. "Ow, my head…" Spyro complained, wishing to rub the spot with his paw.

A minute later, a large dragon walked up to the cage. The dragon was almost black, but there was a hint of green. It had four horns; two were just behind the cheeks and were fairly small, and the other two were on top of the dragon's head, and were slightly oversized. It had piercing, yellow eyes and yellowish, razor-sharp teeth. The dragon had a dark orange underbelly and chest, and had a long, spiky tail. Its tail blade was a matrix of spikes. Otherwise, the dragon had spikes almost everywhere; on the sides of its neck, ankles, and tail. His name was Sworgon, and it was a dragon that yielded extraordinary earth powers. He could command earthquakes, raise platforms of land, create spires in a few moments, and his melee attacks were rock solid.

As Sworgon approached, the throb in Spyro's head intensified, and soon the agony radiated throughout his whole body. He gritted his teeth while glaring at Sworgon.

"Ah, the purple dragon who defeated Cynder," Sworgon said, reminding both Spyro and Cynder of their first big adventure. Then, Sworgon continued, "I assume you are wondering why you are here. Well, you are here so that you can you can bring that infernal fire guardian to us, and help us take over the world."

"We'll never do any one of those things!" Spyro and Cynder retorted at the same time. Sworgon smirked. In fact, he was hoping Spyro and Cynder would say that, because it was what he had planned in his monologue. "Who says you had an option?" Sworgon growled, "I'll make you!"

With that, Sworgon opened the cage and grabbed Spyro by the neck. Spyro was too surprised to react; and even if he wasn't, he couldn't move for two reasons. One: Sworgon's death grip hurt him, and two: the moment Sworgon made contact with him, the pain in Spyro's forehead blocked his senses and blinded him. It hurt so much that he roared out in pain. Cynder tried to attack Sworgon, but the evil dragon had already taken Spyro out of the cage and slammed it shut.

"_This_ is what happens to anyone who dares to defy me," Sworgon growled, slamming Spyro into a wall. Spyro moaned in pain and futilely spat a fireball in front of him. Sworgon ducked under it, and then punched Spyro's muzzle. Tears of pain formed in his eyes. "Pathetic," Sworgon mocked.

Sworgon threw Spyro to the middle of the floor. "Fight me, weakling!" Sworgon hissed. Spyro trembled in pain on the ground, lying on his side. He found his energy and snapped, "It's hard to fight when I'm tied up!" To Sworgon, it was a hard blow to his brain. How could he have missed that? So far he had predicted Spyro's every move. Surely he wasn't getting dumber?

"Fine, dragon. What difference does it make? You do not stand a chance against me," Sworgon mocked. He removed the chains on Spyro's forelegs with one swift swipe. Spyro stretched his limbs and stood up on all fours. But he couldn't fight; his head hurt too much. Nevertheless, Spyro fired a fireball in Sworgon's direction, but he simply dodged it and tail swiped Spyro's side, sending him skidding to the right and groaning in agony.

"Is that all you can do, dragon?" Sworgon derided. Spyro growled at the green enemy, and fired another fireball, which Sworgon deflected it with his tail. Sworgon scoffed and spat an earth bomb at Spyro. He couldn't dodge it, and roared in pain. He was blasted into the ceiling hard, and fell limply to the ground; unconscious.

Cynder couldn't believe her eyes and unleashed a poison fury in the cage; the green acid ate away the bars and Cynder sped out and jumped onto Sworgon's back. She was about to slice his neck when something grabbed her throat and slammed her into the ceiling. Cynder flapped her wings to keep in midair while facing her attacker – Malefor, also known as the Dark Master.

The impact was incredible and caused rocks to fall from the ceiling. The rocks increased in size as more fell, and Cynder found herself dodging them to keep conscious. Before Sworgon could envelop himself in a shield of Earth, a rock hit him on the head and knocked him out. The same thing happened to Malefor, except that he was still conscious, but very dazed.

Cynder dragged Spyro into the cage, which provided temporary shelter, just as a rock fell to the place where he had been lying. "Spyro… Wake up!" Cynder yelled as a rock dented the roof of the cage. "Ugh………What happened...?" Spyro groaned, sitting up slowly. He looked around, frowned, and then looked at Cynder in dismay. Meanwhile, Malefor groaned while trying to stand. He started dragging himself toward the cage.

A rock penetrated the roof of the cage, which was tilting at an abnormal angle. It was only a matter of time until Spyro and Cynder would be trapped. They hugged each other, preparing themselves for the end, when Spyro felt a strange feeling inside him. A dim, blue glow surrounded him, and then he unleashed a time fury.

The result was a vortex that grew from the floor. It swirled like a spiral, but it was getting smaller by every second. Spyro's strength was exhausted from the time fury, so he fell to the ground, unconscious. Cynder hesitated, and then reluctantly dragged him into the portal.

Meanwhile, Sworgon woke up with a growl. The first thing he saw was a small, blue circle. He ran toward it, while the cave was collapsing. The entrance was completely blocked off, and the rocks fell faster, and were larger. The time portal was small, but Sworgon managed to fit into it and warped somewhere through time.

The time vortex closed a minute later. The four dragons were all teleported through time…

----------

Spyro slowly opened his eyes, groaned, and shut them due to the blinding sunlight. He frowned and tried to stand, but his body was too weak and he collapsed. He groaned again and tried to open his eyes once more. This time he faced away from where he thought the origin of the light was, and he saw a purple shape. Spyro tried to focus through his blurry vision and saw that it was a dragon.

Spyro thought that it was impossible. The only purple dragon that existed, beside Spyro, was Malefor. But the new dragon couldn't be Malefor… He was too small. In fact he was exactly the same size as Spyro. As Spyro was searching his mind for an explanation, the new character spoke: "Don't try to move. Just… stay still."

The voice seemed oddly familiar; it was low and mysterious. Spyro could tell that despite the speaker's calmness, he was excited. Well, it was not surprising. It wasn't every day that you could meet another purple dragon, whether he was good or bad. Spyro was excited to meet him as well, but he wasn't supposed to move. He didn't really need convincing; Spyro was really tired and felt like sleeping.

He was so tired and anxious that he almost forgot about Cynder. Spyro looked around, but no one was in the room except for the other purple dragon. Speaking of a room, Spyro noticed that the light was coming from a door; he was in a one-room house. He was on a grass bed; much like the one at the temple.

The stranger spoke again. "How did you get here? I found you unconscious outside my home." Spyro unfolded his wings and replied, "Well… It's kinda hard to explain…" In truth, even though the stranger was a purple dragon, Spyro didn't entirely trust him. His gut was tingling whenever he looked at the newcomer.

The dragon sighed and said, "I guess you don't trust me, do you? And I think I already know how you got here. You unleashed a time fury, right?" Spyro gasped, and then narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "Are you reading my mind?" The other dragon chuckled, and reluctantly nodded. Then he declared, "Okay, I will not do it again. So I suppose I'll have to tell you my name…"

"I think I know already," Spyro stated, horrified at his own thoughts. It was the other dragon's turn to be suspicious; "Are you reading my mind?" Spyro forced a smile and shook his head. "You're… Malefor… right?"

The dragon that Spyro called Malefor looked mildly surprised and confused. He said, "Not many people know me… Yes, I am Malefor."

----------

Please, don't kill me for the cliffy. I just felt like stopping here. And I promise that the next chapter will be longer.


	4. Memories

PART 4

The end of the previous chapter was nice, I think, but now it is hard to begin typing… Sorry, but the start starts somewhere else. WARNING: Contains BLOOD… And it also includes a head that is not connected to a neck. And hell, this took ages to write. Ooh, I learned a new word: pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanokoniosis.

----------------

Somewhere far away, Sworgon was thrown out of the time vortex. He was in a large room with medieval windows; probably a castle. "_Perfect,_" Sworgon thought. "_A great lair._" While already scheming another plot to dominate the world, he suddenly realized that he might not be the only inhabitant in the castle. And anyway, it would be beneficial to have a look around.

Before he got a chance to leave, a brown, wooden door burst open. Three strange, bipedal creatures entered. They did not have tails. No horns, no wings, not even horns. But they weren't human. Their spines also had spikes, and their skin color was a sickly green. Sworgon didn't know, but they had long tongues that could extend out of their mouths to an enormous length. And unfortunately, their… saliva… was, well, poisonous. Not very poisonous, but a lot of it could kill you. (They looked like lizards, except for not having a tail)

Sworgon growled at them, and sent them all crashing into the wall with a tail swipe. One of them dared to stand, but with a simple movement of his claws and the summoning of elemental power, Sworgon created an earthen spire from the ceiling, and it fell on the creature's head, cracking it open like a raw egg. Sworgon grinned; blood satisfied his sadistic nature; especially when he was in a bad mood. And he was almost always in a bad mood.

He dodged a flying tongue and clawed at it, shredding the soft, pink material. The lizard who took the cut shrieked, and tried to retreat, but Sworgon caught it with his tail. The remaining lizard tried to use the opportunity, but Sworgon just bit its neck and tossed it aside. He grasped the last, trembling lizard man and brought him level with his own eyes. Then Sworgon growled, "Is there anyone in this castle? Tell me or I will kill you… and very slowly!"

The lizard stammered, "N-no… Y-you can ha-have this p-place…" Sworgon grinned, then stated, "Thank you for your honesty and cooperation." Then he sliced the lizard's head off.

---------------

A black, female dragon groaned and rose from unconsciousness. It was none other than Cynder, of course. She looked around, although her vision was blurred. However, she could tell that Spyro was not nearby. Spyro… he saved her life… again…

Only then did she actually analyze her surroundings. She was in a small cave with sunlight beaming through a large, oval entrance. She stepped out casually, and saw that in front of her was a cliff. She looked up. The cave was under a plateau, and on top of the plateau, Cynder could see a castle.

Well… It was a shelter… and maybe Spyro saw it as well and hid there. So, Cynder figured that she would head that way…

---------------

Spyro thought that his body would run, back into a corner and hide for the rest of his life, even though he had expected the answer. "M-Malefor… It _is _you…!" Spyro stammered, and unfortunately, he did it out loud.

"What? Exactly what happened that I don't know? But nothing could have happened. I was right here. And do you know me? Who's the dark master? _What_ is going on here?" Malefor asked. And when he asked, it seemed like he truly demanded an answer.

"Well… Um… Remember that I came from a different time… and in the time I come from... you… you… you're… evil," Spyro explained briefly. Malefor raised an eyebrow. "Evil?" He questioned, "What did… _I_… do?"

"Well, you… tried to turn the whole world evil. And you captured three of the four guardians--" As Spyro was explaining, he remembered Ignitus and the others. Ignitus was probably worried, and the other guardians were still awaiting Spyro to rescue them. None of that would come any time soon. Spyro had to find Cynder, and defeat the older Malefor and Sworgon so that they would not terrorize the world in _this_ time.

"Did I?" Malefor said, "Okay, would you mind to tell the _whole _story, from the beginning?" Spyro nodded, and then sighed. It was a long story. But they had time.

As Spyro was talking, he found it hard to look at Malefor. He was not very different from himself, but just knowing who Malefor was made things a lot worse with him. But this Malefor… Spyro could change the future with him. But, unfortunately, there was only one way to make sure that the future did not occur: kill Malefor.

Soon Spyro got to the part where he defeated Cynder and when she turned to a small dragon like him. He found himself almost choking while talking, and then he realized how much he missed her.

-----------------

Cynder cautiously walked toward the castle door. Something about this place seemed eerie. She was beginning to think of going somewhere else, when she heard a loud roar of thunder. With it, a heavy downfall began, the rainwater crashing into her.

It's hard to resist shelter when you are in this type of rain, which is similar to hail in the pressure that is put on you. Hesitantly, she knocked on the door. She waited impatiently as the rain continued. But what the victorious grin that greeted her was far worse than all the rain in the world.

-------------

An uncanny silence hung in the air. Spyro couldn't talk anymore. His mind had wandered off elsewhere at the mention of Cynder. He had to find her. Maybe she was in danger.

As if he had read Spyro's mind, Malefor said (rather imperatively) "No, you're not going anywhere. Not until you heal completely. If what I understood is correct, then you're facing a strong enemy."

"What?" Spyro stammered, "I never told you-""Okay, fine," Malefor said, "I just wanted to know. I won't read your mind." "You said that already," Spyro informed, in a bit of a growl. "Okay, sorry," Malefor apologized.

Spyro sighed and looked out the open door. The fresh, cool air found its way in the room and stirred the grass and leaves of the bed. For some reason Spyro was reminded of home – Sparx, the guardians…

"Malefor… I really need to find her… I can't just sit here and do nothing when I know she's in trouble. There's one thing you can learn about me; I don't just do nothing." Malefor stared at the door, in thought. Then he announced, "Well, I guess there's no keeping you here. But remember, we'll just look. We don't want a fight."

"Why not?" Spyro asked, "You _can_ fight, can't you?"

Malefor scoffed, and then replied, "Yes, I can. But if there was a fight, the attacker would probably be smart enough to head for you, since you're vulnerable. And I don't know if I'm capable of defending you while fighting someone."

"When can we go?" Spyro asked, anxious.

"Well, right now, I guess…" Malefor said while rubbing his neck. Spyro eyed him curiously. It seemed that Malefor's calmness had faltered; there was an unexplainable emotion in his eyes.

"What's wrong?" Spyro asked.

"It's just that… the dragons in this village don't like us. They despise purple dragons. I'm not sure why. But they do. And they're really unpleasant when they see one." As he said that, Malefor recalled the day when he had arrived to this village…

_------------------_

_3 years earlier…_

_Malefor had been wandering around aimlessly, when he encountered a wild cat. It had done considerable damage, since at that time he did not know how to fight properly. He managed to run away, but with many scratches. Wounded and cold in the downpour that was gathering, he headed toward a sea of houses._

_The streets were abandoned, and for good reason. The rain was slowly transforming into hail, and the ice shards were painful against Malefor's scales. He couldn't see much in the weather, but he did see a tall, wooden building a few meters ahead of him._

_He reached the building and knocked on the door. His body was growing numb from the cold. It felt like ages, until the door finally swung open to reveal a large, white dragon with yellow horns, wings, and underbelly. The dragon's eyes were wide with fear and hatred, and for some reason it looked extremely startled. Malefor didn't understand why._

"_Get- Get out of here!" the white dragon yelled, barely audible over the raging storm. Although he was already drenched, tears formed in Malefor's eyes. Such rejection was unbelievable, incomprehensible. "Get out!" the dragon growled. He looked ready to strike._

_Malefor couldn't react. Such cruelty and the cold of the storm left him in utter paralysis. It was a big mistake staying there. "Get OUT!" the dragon roared, slashing at Malefor. He barely missed Malefor's head, and moved in closer. This time he successfully tail swiped Malefor's stomach, sending him down onto the icy path._

"_Don't even come close to this house! Or any houses!" the dragon yelled and slammed the door. Malefor didn't get up. He was exhausted. The hail pelted him, until eventually he was completely covered with it. The numbing cold caused him to black out. His last thought was '_why_'._

_A couple of hours later…_

_An unexpected feeling of warmth pulsed through Malefor's veins as he came to consciousness. He opened his eyes and gasped as he saw a wooden floor instead of hail under him. He looked around. A fire was crackling nearby. Otherwise he was in a plain old one-room house._

_Malefor wanted to look outside, but two things stopped him. One: he could barely get up. He was more hurt than he had thought. Two: The events that occurred previously haunted him. What if there were more of those mean dragons? Would they hurt him, like that white one did?_

_He opened the door ajar and peeked out. He saw nothing but trees and snow. Fairly far away was the rest of the village. Malefor's heart calmed. He could leave the house without being spotted. He decided to look for food. So, he headed into the woods. He hadn't even though of who his savior might have been._

_-------------------------_

"Hello? Malefor?" Spyro inquired, moving his paw up and down in front of Malefor's face. Malefor seemed to react. He shook his head, cleared the memories, and said, in a rather shaky voice, "L-let's go…"

"Wait, what was that?" What were you thinking about?" Spyro asked. Malefor sighed, and explained, "It's just… when I first came here… I was pretty badly beat, and it was hailing… it was three years ago… I… I had come up to a house to look for shelter… but for some reason, they hit me… for no reason… then I woke up in this house…"

Spyro was silent for a while. In his mind, everything had snapped together. What if the main reason for Malefor's evilness was revenge; revenge on those who had treated him cruelly when he had asked for help?

Malefor sighed, and then said, "Come on; let's go… unless you want to stay here."

Despite the pain in his legs, Spyro stood up and headed to the door. Malefor smiled. "Determined, I see," he noted. Spyro returned the smile.

Malefor opened the door. Even though he tried to hide it, it was apparent that he was anxious. "Nobody really heads out here, so I guess there's no reason for me to hide like this… But still, I never really forgot that day and I don't like going outside," Malefor confessed.

The coast was clear – as it always seemed to be. Malefor signaled Spyro to come out.

The sky was blue, with little white clouds dotting it. The landscape was calm, and was covered in a thin blanket of snow. Yet, the sun was shining bright, fighting hard to evaporate the snow. It was slightly cold; nothing that Spyro couldn't handle. But what _did _bother him was the ground. It was freezing. With every step, the cold traveled through his paws and into his entire body. He summoned the fire element inside him, and it began to warm him.

"So… where should we look?" Malefor asked. The question seemed more like a whisper. Spyro scanned the landscape. _'Cynder, where are you?' _he thought.

--------------------------------

Sworgon scanned the landscape from the balcony. Cynder's arrival was a pleasant surprise indeed. She would serve as bait for Spyro, obviously. She was currently chained down in the dungeon. Sworgon grinned. There would be no failure this time.

----------------------------------

"So what was the temple like? The one you said you lived in when you fought Cynder," Malefor asked.

"It was… big. And peaceful, at most times. Unless Cynder and Sparx were arguing. Then it gets noisy," Spyro answered.

Malefor stopped walking abruptly. "Hey, look over there," he announced, pointing toward a castle on the horizon.

"Will you look at that," Spyro commented. He had no idea that Sworgon muttered the exact same thing to himself as he grinned in anticipation.

------------------------------------------

No, I wasn't dead. I wasn't anywhere near it. I just overcame my writer's block today, and thus the next chapter is out. Hope ya like it. I'm so overjoyed that I published something I'll even accept flame critiques.

PS: Get ready: probably all of the next chapters will end in such a cliffy manner, unless you really, _really_ hate it.


	5. Confrontation

Spyro noticed that Malefor wasn't very talkative. In fact, he usually didn't talk at all unless someone else started a conversation. As the duo made their way toward the castle, Spyro's mind was flooded by hundreds of questions. Most of them were about Malefor – such as, what elements does he know? But the most nagging question of all was: How would Cynder react to seeing Malefor?

As the castle grew nearer, both purple dragons could feel an eerie, ominous aura – otherwise known as the aura of evil.

Soon, Spyro and Malefor were standing outside the door of the huge castle. The windows were dark and eerie, and the whole place seemed abandoned. The grass around the place was overgrown and had a strange blue tint. The sky seemed to almost darken near the castle.

"Shall we?" Malefor asked Spyro, who nodded and knocked on the door.

The door was already opened, and it opened wider when Spyro knocked on it. It was very dark in the castle, with nothing lighting it except the outside sun. Spyro and Malefor warily entered the building as their eyes adjusted to the darkness.

Suddenly, a metal cage dropped onto them, and landed on the ground with a loud clang. Spyro immediately tried breaking the bars, and growled when he was unsuccessful. Malefor just sat there calmly, and announced, "Someone knew we were coming. Given the circumstances, I think it was your enemy, Sworgon."

"Hmm, you might be right," Spyro acknowledged, "Do you have any way for us to get out of this cage?"

"If I knew how to breathe ice, then yes," Malefor replied.

"I know how to breathe ice," Spyro answered.

"Well, then freeze the bars," Malefor instructed. At that, Spyro froze a fairly big area of the bars with his ice breath.

Before Spyro could ask what would happen next, the frozen bars suddenly burst, sending small pieces of ice scattering on the floor.

"How did you-" Spyro started, but Malefor interrupted, "Later."

"I think we should get out of here," Malefor suggested. Spyro had no objections, so they made their way toward the exit.

Suddenly a large spire grew from the ground and completely blocked the exit. To his dismay, Spyro knew who caused that. He turned around while muttering, "Sworgon…"

Sworgon greeted them with an evil grin, although he didn't expect Malefor. In fact he didn't know who the other purple dragon was.

"Ah, it seems what have two purple whelps to deal with," Sworgon mocked with a grin, "Well that's all the more fun."

Malefor and Spyro looked at each other and nodded. Fighting was Sworgon wasn't in their previous plan, but obviously they would have to deal with it.

"Well, since you two don't seem like you wish to begin the fight, the pleasure is all mine," Sworgon declared, and swiped at the two purple dragons with his tail.

Spyro and Malefor ducked (thus narrowly avoiding being hit) and sprang into action. First, Spyro froze Sworgon's face with his ice breath, and then Malefor ran behind Sworgon and sank his claws into his back. Sworgon roared out in pain and attempted to shake Malefor off.

"I'll go see if Cynder's here," Spyro announced, running toward the stairs leading down. "Make it quick, Malefor yelled, and grunted with the effort to keep clinging to Sworgon's back.

-----

Spyro ran through the basement halls, barging into every room, and yelling Cynder's name. Every single room seemed to be abandoned. Finally, he came across a door that was locked. "Cynder!" he yelled, while banging on the door. Then he quieted down just enough to hear Cynder's muffled cries behind the door.

Spyro backed up and tackled the door with all his might. On the second try, the door fell off its hinges, and Spyro rushed into the room.

Spyro didn't have to search for Cynder at all; the room was bare, without windows, and very tiny.

Cynder was bound and gagged with thick ropes. Spyro shredded the ropes, and gave Cynder a brief hug.

"Are you okay?" Spyro asked. She nodded, although she was sobbing. "Come on, we gotta go," Spyro said, and they rushed out of the room.

-------

Meanwhile, Sworgon realized that the dragon clinging to his back was not to be shaken off by mere movement, so, with a roar, he unleashed an earth fury. Malefor, roaring in agony, was blasted into a wall. Sworgon wasted no time; he was already on Malefor, pinning him down.

Before Malefor could counterattack or Sworgon deal the finishing blow, suddenly Sworgon was hit with a large fireball that singed his entire side. He roared out in anguish and glared at the approaching Spyro – whose mouth was smoking – with hatred.

------

Cynder was stunned to see another purple dragon. Her first thought was that the dragon was Spyro's clone. But then she saw the differences – the tint of purple, the height…

Then she realized that she should help them – at least, help Spyro. She entered the fight by breathing poison into Sworgon's face.

-------

Sworgon roared out in pain, and clutched his face. This allowed Spyro to ram Sworgon in his stomach. Malefor followed by slashing at Sworgon's neck.

By now, smug though he was, Sworgon realized he could not defeat all three dragons right now. So, with a roar, he unleashed an abnormally strong Earth Fury, which sent the three dragons into various walls, roaring in pain.

Before the dragons could recover from the blow, Sworgon blasted through the ceiling, and flew off toward the horizon.

-----

Spyro, Malefor, and Cynder all got up and brushed themselves off. Then they sat in a small circle and exchanged questions.

Cynder was quick to ask: "Spyro, who is this dragon?"

Spyro was hesitant, as he wasn't sure how Cynder would react. "Uh, this is… … this is Malefor."

Cynder's eyes snapped on the calm purple dragon. Suddenly she jumped out at him. Malefor felt that coming and moved to the side. Before Cynder could try another attack, Spyro stepped in front of her.

"Spyro, get out of my way. The bastard's gonna pay."

Spyro didn't move. "Cynder, this isn't the Malefor that turned you against me. This is the past Malefor," Spyro explained.

Cynder bought none of it and tried to run around Spyro, but again he intervened.

This time Spyro jumped onto her and pinned her down. "If it weren't for Malefor, you would still be locked in that tiny, windowless room. This is NOT the same Malefor that turned you evil, okay?" Cynder calmed down soon, and Spyro let her go.

"So, am I forgiven?" asked Malefor, who had been sitting calmly and watching Spyro and Cynder argue.

"No," Cynder growled, "This is just a temporary setback until we kill you in the future."

Spyro sighed. Cynder and Malefor would probably never become true friends at this rate.

-------

After what seemed like an hour, the three dragons decided to go home – although Cynder didn't think of Malefor's house as her home.

The walk was silent; not that there wasn't anything to talk about.

The sky was darker now, and the faint glow of the moon and stars strained to illuminate the Earth. There were no other lights, except for a few visible candle-lights from the village in the horizon.

By the time the dragons arrived at Malefor's house, their limbs were sore and they were tired. Spyro let Cynder have his bed, and she was very grateful, because she was very worn out.

"Sorry, I'm not used to visitors. I'll go get some grass for the bed," Malefor informed, and walked out of the house.

Spyro sat on his haunches and sighed. "Cynder, I know you're uncomfortable around Malefor, but you've got to get used to it. I don't think we'll be returning to our time anytime soon."

Cynder sighed and tried to sleep. Spyro waited for Malefor to return. In a few minutes, Malefor returned, with loads of Grass in his mouth, and more in the grip of his paws. "It's hard to carry stuff when you're a quadruped," Malefor said, and dropped Spyro's share of grass in front of him.

"Thanks," Spyro said. He yawned, and finally went to sleep.

------

Spyro groaned when light reached his eyes. He tried to ignore it but gave up and opened his eyes. The sun was shining brightly, illuminating the house. Spyro yawned, and saw that Malefor and Cynder were also waking up.

Spyro stretched his limbs, and the other dragons did the same. After a silent minute, Spyro asked, "So…what are we gonna do today?"

"Train," Malefor replied plainly, "I have a feeling we'll need to be stronger for our next encounter with enemies."

---------

Not too far away – in fact only 20 miles east of Malefor's house – lived a wind dragon known as Orcheus. He was an orphan, and lived a very poor life. Physically, he was fairly weak, so he relied on hi wind element.

The area where Orcheus lived was inhabited by wild beats, such as lions and tigers. Orcheus hunted those. Then there were corrupted lions and tigers, which had long teeth, and seemed very evil. Orcheus tried to avoid those.

Last but the most troubling were the monsters. Orcheus had no other name for them. They were very rare; as a matter of fact, Orcheus that there was only one of them in the forest where he lived.

The monster was huge, as were its teeth and claws, which were used many times to rip an animal apart. The creature itself was grey (just like Orcheus) and furry. It had large, evil eyes, and the monster always seemed to be grinning. In other words, he slightly resembled a colossal gorilla. But he was much more powerful than that.

Right now, Orcheus was running for his life. He had accidently woke up this creature, and now ended up on its breakfast menu. Orcheus ran, although he wasn't used to it and his limbs started hurting fairly soon. But he ignored it and ran on for his life – whatever kind of life he had.

After half an hour of running, the creature had given up. But Orcheus didn't stop and kept running for five more minutes, until he slumped to the ground, panting, and rested.

After a while, he realized that he was lost. His home – even though it wasn't much of a 'home' - was far away. Orcheus cursed under his breath and continued on, looking for shelter.

After a while, the forest was gone, and instead he found himself walking on what was supposed to be a grassy meadow; but now it was covered with snow.

In the distance, he could see a small village. That was now Orcheus' destination.

---------

Spyro, Malefor, and Cynder were outside, showing off their skills. Malefor revealed to that knew how to alter gravity, and that he knew how to use fear, wind, and fire.

After a few rounds of elemental shooting, the dragons decided to take a break.

Spyro thought everything was so quiet… plus, everything was tense.

"Okay now we're gonna-" Malefor started, but interrupted himself and pointed at a figure in the distance, "Hey, look over there. It's a dragon.

--------

Sworgon flew off into the distance, growling. He cursed Spyro and his companions.

Now he needed to think for an appropriate time to strike. "Hmm… Maybe I can turn them against each other," Sworgon suggested to himself.

He approved of this, and changed his destination. He turned around in the air and flew back to the castle.


End file.
